More Than Anyone
by mrs clark gable
Summary: It's been five months since the canceled wedding and the truth has finally come out. The question is, where will Sami and Lucas go from here? Can they get past Sami's reluctance? No Stan. Slightly future fic when I started. COMPLETE
1. Rejection

**My poor little romantic heart can't take all the angst I know days is going to throw me when lumi are back on the screen. This is a get back together fic, it'll be short. Most likely not more than ten chapters. This one's kind of sad, though. The Stan storyline hasn't happened in this, not that I'm completely opposed to Stan it's just too soon to tell. And I haven't forgotten about Wedding Days, I have a new chapter, but it's not with me so until Monday.**

It had been almost exactly five months since he had last walked through this door. He had stared at it at least a million times, willing it to open while at the same time praying that it wouldn't.

In his haste to get to Sami, Lucas didn't even think of this fact as he burst through the front door of her apartment. She looked up in surprise, quickly turning to shock as she took in his wild, almost desperate eyes.

Sami had never expected Lucas to come running in her door ever again. She knew she had been set up, but with months of searching for proof and planning extremely painful deaths for Kate with no actual results she had to give herself some time to regroup. In other words she had taken a break, because revenge is a dish best served cold. The only plausible reason she could come up with to explain his presence would be if Will was hurt.

"Oh my God, Lucas is something…"

But her question was interrupted by his firm grasp as he pulled her into his arms. Lucas held her as close as possible and she relished in the moment. She didn't know why he was there or what was happening and she probably should have stopped it, but it felt too wonderful.

"God, I'm sorry. I am so, so sorry."

And then he was kissing her and it had been much too long since that had happened. It was one of those perfect kisses that can only be shared between two people who know exactly what the other wants and needs. Then he was pulling her shirt over her head and those hands were amazing and then there was the bedroom.

Sami would be eternally grateful that some higher power somewhere had made her shave her legs this morning. Still in mourning over her lost chance, she would do it only when the stubble became noticeable to herself. No one else would see them, so why keep up appearances?

Lucas knew he should stop long enough to talk to her, but God it had been too long since they had left a trail of clothing to the bedroom. Her skin was still so soft, and those lips could do incredible things. He had missed this too much to stop now.

………………………………………………..

The sun shone through the window as Lucas woke up and looked down at the warm body curling into him, extremely thankful that it hadn't been another dream. Sami was sleeping soundly with her head resting on his shoulder and her hand upon his heart, the way it should be. Slowly, he ran a hand down her arm, finding the hand resting on his chest and interlocking their fingers.

Sami woke up to the glorious feeling of being in Lucas's arms. She inhaled deeply and snuggled closer to memorize this beautiful moment. It had been amazing, better than amazing. Lucas had come back to her and everything was going to be perfect. Until Kate found out, which brought up the question why he would come here in the first place.

Lucas was completely content to stay here to enjoy the closeness between them forever, but suddenly Sami stiffened in his arms. She pulled away quickly and sat up. She pulled the covers up under her arms to cover her bare chest, to hide herself from his view.

Feeling his heart sinking slowly, he tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but she flinched before any real contact could be made. His heart broke a little more as he caught sight of slightly glassy eyes.

Sami closed her eyes to fight off her tears, but instead of trapping them in it only served to force them down her cheeks. As one silently slid down, a gentle hand brushed it away.

"This shouldn't have happened."

It was barely more than a whisper, but the loudest scream in the world wouldn't have been more shocking to him.

"What?"

"It shouldn't have happened."

"Sami," tenderly he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, but it only served to make her formerly silent crying audible, "I want…"

"Why did you come here?"

"That's what I'm trying to tell you."

"No. I want to know what happened that made you suddenly have this need to sleep with me."

Frustrated, he ran a hand through his hair before taking one of her own as he tried to form the right words.

"I went to have dinner with my mom before. I overheard her on the phone talking about how she set you up. I was so angry, Sami. There aren't enough words to describe how I felt at that moment, what I still feel when I think about it. I cut her out of my life, and then I came straight to you. I love you. You have to know it wasn't about sex."

Her heart sank a little more, though it would be a lie to say a small hint of satisfaction hadn't pushed through hearing that Kate had been cut out. But it wasn't enough. It may be wrong and selfish, but Sami didn't want him to come back just because Kate had dug her own grave. Her tears didn't stop and she let out a shuddering breath.

"I think you should go."

Lucas shook his head in an attempt to clear his devastated confusion. It didn't work.

"What the hell is this? I really don't get it. Only a few hours ago you were _underneath_ me, and now you want me to leave? Do you not love me anymore, is that it?"

She couldn't take the forlorn pleading in his voice. Sami turned to face him only to see his own eyes were filling with tears. She knew if she was going to go through with it she should let him believe just that. But the words wouldn't form and the thought of him actually believing that she didn't love him was too awful.

"Of course I love you. I can't not love you."

"Then I don't understand. Why are you doing this?"

Sami looked down, certain that if she maintained eye contact that she wouldn't be able to go through with letting him go. How could she possibly explain it to him?

"Do you know how little respect I have for myself?"

"What?" How could she not respect herself. Sami was the strongest, bravest, most beautiful person he knew.

"For years I chased after a man I knew didn't want me. I let Austin try to turn me into Carrie. I let Franco change me into a person I never wanted to be. I went back to Brandon even though he slept with Lexie. I've never asked for an apology or and explanation for Franco or Italy. I let everyone in this town, my own family, belittle me. I don't want that to be my life anymore. I don't want to be weak."

"Are you honestly putting me in the same category as Austin, Franco, and Brandon?"

That thought simultaneously disgusted and agitated him. He did not want to be thought of like that, especially not by Sami.

Lightly, she brushed his cheek with her hand, "No, I'm not. You could never be like them, Lucas. Our relationship could never be anything other than the real thing."

He affectionately tucked some stray hair back behind her ear, "Then your telling me to leave doesn't make sense at all."

"I lived my worst nightmare for five long, excrutiating months. My son won't talk to me and the one wedding that was supposed to happen didn't. I can understand you believing what you saw; I really can, for awhile. The first couple of weeks, hell the first month or two, I can understand. But you had five months, _five_ to doubt her even the slightest bit, but you didn't. The only reason you're here right now is because Kate messed up and got caught."

"I did doubt her, I swear." He had to find a way to stop her from doing this.

"Not enough to give me the benefit of the doubt. You didn't look for the truth, but it doesn't matter. She'd still find a way to stop us if we tried again. I won't be able to take it when she succeeds again."

"No. I don't accept that. It's supposed to end with you and me. This is the part where we get our happily ever after."

"This isn't a movie, Lucas. It's not a TV show, it's not a romance novel. This is real life, and sometimes we don't get the ending we want."

"We could, you're just too scared to try."

"So what if I am? I have to protect myself."

"I'll prove it to you, Sami. We are supposed to be together. I refuse to accept any other outcome."

"You need to leave now."

"I'll go, for now, but I'll be back."

He leaned forward and grazed her cheek with his lips. She almost broke at the loving gesture, but Sami maintained her resolve. It would be better in the long run. He got up to get dressed without any effort to cover his body from her view before grabbing the few clothes that were actually in the bedroom. He meant every word he said, soon they'd be together again.


	2. Reunion

Lucas carefully closed the door to Sami's apartment and sighed. She was so damn stubborn, but he couldn't even be angry because of it. All that he felt was overwhelming sadness. She was completely justified in being afraid, he would just have to prove her wrong. He entered his apartment without registering the fact that the door was unlocked.

Will sat on the couch quietly staring at the small frame in his hands. He had come home from his sleepover early because he still didn't like leaving his dad alone, but he hadn't exactly gotten to look for him yet. The closed desk drawer had been calling to him and he couldn't resist.

Will knew what was hidden under a bunch of old papers in that drawer. The drawer he had put off limits to himself. It always caught his eyes as he passed it, but today the summons from it seemed stronger than ever. Knowing it was useless to deny himself, Will dug out the old photograph and sank down on the couch.

When the door opened, he shoved it under the couch cushions faster than he could say, "I didn't do anything." He heard rather than saw his dad enter muttering incoherently to himself. Will swallowed nervously, hoping against hope that Lucas would only say a quick good morning so that he could put the picture back into its hiding place, "Hey, Dad."

"Will. What're you doing here?"

To his dismay, Will watched as his father came over to sit down beside him. Right on top of the picture. Worse yet, he had the I-have-something-to-tell-you face.

"I didn't feel like staying at Josh's all day."

Will couldn't stop staring as his dad began to sit down, as if in slow motion. The closer he came to the cushion, the more danger the picture was in. He couldn't explain it, but at the moment he felt nonsensical panic. If Lucas sat down, it would be crushed and with it Will felt as if he would loose his only link.

"No!" he moved swiftly, pulling out the photo before Lucas could sit down completely, "You're going to break it."

Lucas observed in confusion as Will practically shoved him out of the way to dive under the couch cushions for an unidentified object. Apparently he found what he was looking for because he sat up cradling a square something against his chest and sent his father an accusing glare.

"I'm sorry, buddy. I didn't know it was there."

Forgetting his defensive posture for a moment, Will deflated. Unfortunately, he forgot that he didn't want his dad to see the picture within the frame until he saw Lucas's eyes grow sad.

Lucas's heart broke a little more as he finally saw what his son had been hiding. It was their camping photo from February 2004. The three of them were smiling with all the hope they had for the future. Sami looked beautiful.

"Will…"

"I just miss her sometimes," he cut in defensively. He tried to sound brave, but Lucas could hear the tears in his voice, "I can't forgive her, but I miss her."

Gently Lucas took the frame from Will and put it on the coffee table, then faced his son.

"There's something I need to tell you. Remember how I was going to have dinner with Grandma Kate last night?"

"Yeah," Will felt the strangest stirring of hope start to build at the unrestrained anger in his voice.

"Well, she was on the phone when I got there and I overheard part of her conversation. Your mom wasn't lying, Will. Kate drugged Sami and Brandon, then set it up so that I would find them."

"You mean…"

"She was telling the truth."

………………………………...

Sami sighed as she sank down onto the couch. As soon as Lucas had left she'd gotten dressed, but couldn't get any food down her throat. She should probably have started getting ready for work. It sucked working on a Saturday.

Usually she loved her job, a few hours of mindless tasks and she was exhausted enough to only partially remember her dreams in the morning. After Kate had fired her, Sami had found a job at a small boutique that not many of the main families of Salem frequented. She and the ownergot along famously; it was probably the best job she'd ever had.

Today she didn't feel like going in at all. Sami knew she wouldn't be able to hide behind her menial duties for long and thoughts of Lucas would inevitably invade her mind. Lucas and Will were always in her thoughts, but now the distraction would be even worse. Giving him up was almost worse than loosing him.

She rested her head against the back of couch and closed her eyes, remembering the incredible sensation of being with Lucas again. Making love with him was always phenomenal, but last night had been better than ever.

"Mom," the faint whisper lifted her spirits more than anyone or anything ever could.

"Will," her boy was just as handsome as ever. He stood in the doorway with tears in his eyes. She barely noticed his proud father standing behind him before Will launched himself into her embrace.

"I'm so sorry, Mom," he buried his face in her neck and cried like he hadn't cried in years. Nothing was more comforting than being hugged by his mother. She was warm and safe, but above all else she was his mother and that was the most soothing fact of all, "I should've believed you."

Sami ever so gently squished his body closer and cradled his head. His brown hair was soft and downy; he hadn't even put gel in to prepare for the day. She savored the moment, the moment when her little boy was finally back in her arms, "Shhh, baby, none of that matters now. I'm just sorry you had to go through it."

Lucas moved further inside and closed the door. He almost felt as if he was intruding on a private reunion, but he wouldn't have missed it for the world. It was what he lived for, seeing Sami and Will as happy as they could possibly be. Right now, the three of them were happier than they had been in months.

Slowly Sami pulled back to look at her beautiful boy's face. He was actually crying, no holding back because he was twelve years old and therefore too old for such things as crying. The raw vulnerability on his face almost took her breath away. Tenderly she wiped away his tears with the pads of her thumbs, "Everything's going to be alright."

Will looked at her with complete trust in his eyes and confidence he was far from feeling in his voice, "Things are going to go back to normal now, right? I mean, you and Dad are going to get back together, so we can start planning the wedding again? Right?"

"Oh, sweetie," she couldn't do it. She couldn't say no and break his heart all over again. It was bad enough breaking her own with the knowledge of her decision. Instead she decided on a vague answer, "It's not quite that simple."

Refusing to accept something so ambiguous, Will didn't stop questioning, "What do you mean? You are getting back together, aren't you?"

Lucas met her eyes across the room, silently daring her to tell their son exactly what she had told him earlier that morning. Daring her to say it and actually mean it. He knew she couldn't.

"I just meant we have a lot of things to work out first. Lets not think about that right now."

"Okay," Will answered hesitantly.

He wasn't sure he liked the sound of her voice. She sounded reluctant, too reluctant. He could think about his parents' relationship later, right now he just wanted them to spend some family time together like they used to.

"Do you think, maybe, the three of us could do something? Maybe spend the day together?"

"I'd love that, little man, but I have to work today. In fact, I should be going soon," the disappointment in the room was almost tangible, "Tell you what, I get off at six. You can wait for me here and then we'll spend some time together."

Will met her squarely in the eyes, "All three of us?"

"Yeah, Sami, all three of us?"

He knew she couldn't miss the challenge in his eyes.

"Of course."

Spending the evening with Lucas wouldn't sway her decision. No chance.


	3. Family

**It feels like it's been a long time, but I guess it's because I've never written two fics at once before. I got a little long-winded in this one, so it's longer that the others.**

"Finally," Sami sighed as she dug in her purse for her keys. First, she'd change, then she could go get Lucas and Will for their family night. For a second she thought she heard people in her apartment, but dismissed it as lack of sleep and overload of happiness. She finally got to spend time with her son and that was all Sami could ask for. Lucas was an added bonus she was determined not to enjoy.

Then again, maybe she shouldn't have disregarded the earlier noises, seeing as Lucas and Will were cooking in her kitchen. They were laughing and joking, just the kind of moments she'd always imagined she'd come home to after the wedding.

In fact, if Lucas had been wearing a chef's hat, Sami would have sworn it was some contrived movie-like moment made specifically to tug at her heartstrings. It would have worked, too, "Hey guys. Lucas, I like your apron. Pink is definitely your color."

They turned and actually looked surprised that she was in her own apartment. Lucas smirked and plucked at the top of his apron, "I am secure enough in my masculinity to wear pink, thank you very much. You, young lady, are early."

"So sorry, but my boss let me come home early."

That wasn't exactly a lie, just not the whole truth. It was more like Lindsay had insisted that she go home because she was too "distracted." She had been distracted, which wasn't surprising considering the circumstances.

"Hey, we're not complaining. You can make yourself comfortable and wait for dinner to be served."

"Yeah, Mom, relax. Dinner's looking good, we really went all out."

"We?" Lucas questioned playfully, "How is it 'we'?"

"I did stuff," Will argued, to which Lucas responded to with a dubious look, "I supervised."

"If 'supervised' means sat on the counter, played your Gameboy, and made fun of my apron, then, okay, you supervised," Lucas argued with mock bitterness, "I'm afraid this wonderful meal is all my own creation."

"That's not true. I peeled the potatoes!"

Sami stopped them after Will's triumphant statement to point out that something was boiling over. Lucas rushed at it, like a mother hen, and she went to change chuckling to herself all the way.

Having saved his precious creations from eminent demise, Lucas watched her walk away. This almost felt like everything was normal again. They were a family having dinner, the way it was supposed to be. He could feel the bitterness that had engulfed him in the last few months melting away.

The anger, on the other hand, would never fade. Fortunately, it had a new outlet leading directly to Kate. It was too unbelievable that she would do something this sick and twisted to the family she claimed to love. He shook his head, as if to physically shake away the thought, this was one evening Kate was not going to ruin.

The small family made it through a delicious dinner with no problems, which was quite a feat for residents of Salem. They had fun and talked like nothing had happened. Although, there was an obvious avoidance of all painful subjects, namely the last five months and all things Kate.

Will sat pushing his vegetables around, only half listening to his dad's story about the Horton Foundation. Soon dinner would be over and Dad would have to go back to his apartment. Will had already decided to stay with his mother, but it was too soon for the evening to be over. They were getting along so well.

Was it really that wrong to help the healing process move a little faster? He had given up all hope of ever having this, but now it was back within his grasp and Will was going to fight for it. With that thought firmly in place, he suggested a game or movie with the most innocent expression he could muster.

Lucas knew what he was doing and reminded himself to get his son something special later, "Lets go all out, why not both?"

Sami knew they were trying to prolong the night, but she wouldn't have it any other way. For a little piece of time they were a typical family. She knew they could never be a textbook "normal" family, but she'd take the little bit she could get.

"Will, you can pick something out and we'll clear the table."

The minute Will went into his bedroom awkwardness settled in. Lucas wanted so badly to reach out and pull her to him. Without the security of Will's presence anything could be said, good or bad.

To avoid the uncomfortable situation presented Sami stood to clear the dishes, looking everywhere, but at Lucas who didn't take his gaze off of her. Finally, with a chance to do something with his hands he sprang into action helping to bring the dishes to the sink.

"Since…uh… I made the meal, I'll do the dishes."

"That's okay, I can do it," she leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms protectively over her chest.

Taking the opportunity presented, Lucas stood in front of Sami and tentatively put a hand on her upper arm, gently rubbing up and down. He tried, unsuccessfully, to meet her eyes, "No, I made the mess and I'll clean it up. You can do the dishes next time."

Uncomfortably comfortable with his warm hand on her arm, Sami tried to move away but there was nowhere to go. If he kept touching her she would break, "Next time? Lucas, I don't think we should make a habit of this. You know how I feel. Maybe we can be friends, in time, but right now I think we should keep our distance and try to be civil. Plenty of exes do that, right?"

Her voice shook through out the entire diatribe and not once could she meet his eyes, but Lucas's heart couldn't take the term "exes." It was too reminiscent of the time when he thought they'd never be anything else.

"We're not 'exes', Sami. I think of it more as a _temporary_ separation," lightly he ran his fingers down the side of face and under her chin to lift her eyes to him, "I love you. I know you know that. I know you love me. Let that be enough."

Sami saw the silent entreaty in his eyes. Those brown windows to his soul were begging her to believe in his words, as he did. She couldn't bring herself to look away. When his face started inching closer she found herself inexplicably moving in as well.

Maybe he saw the fleeting moment of indecision in her eyes. Maybe he knew that his tender words had made her doubt her own convictions. Maybe after being apart for so long, he just needed to have as much contact as possible. Maybe she needed to kiss him as much as he needed to kiss her. Whatever it was, Lucas didn't question the progress he was making as he captured her lips.

Sami let herself sink into the kiss, almost forgetting it wasn't supposed to happen. She could almost forget that trying again would mean they'd never have a moment's peace, Kate would make sure of that. She could almost forget that sometimes love isn't enough. Almost.

The kiss ended as unexpectedly as it started, and Lucas felt the loss immediately. Sami broke free of the area she had been trapped in, between Lucas and the counter and crossed her arms defensively in front of herself, "I'm not going to do this."

With a frustrated sigh, Lucas ran a hand threw his hair and focused his intense gaze on her face. She squirmed uneasily, until finally she had to look away, "Can you, at least, tell me how long this is going to last?"

"What're you talking about?" Sami eyed him warily. Was he changing the subject or finding a new angle to get to her with?

"This thing about us not being together. How long is it going to last? I mean, I get it. I disappointed you, so now I have to pay. I understand, but could you at least give me an estimate?" he bit out sarcastically.

"I'm not trying to punish you."

"Really? Because that's how I see it," he saw the anger flare up in her eyes, at least something would always stay the same. She opened her mouth to retort, but he cut her off, "You're basically kicking me out of your life. It feels like a punishment, so if that's not the case, what is it?"

"I'm trying to protect you, protect all three of us," with her eyes she pleaded for his understanding.

Lucas didn't know how he could be so touched and angry at the same time, "Why do all the women in my life feel the need to protect me? That's exactly how my mom tried to justify herself. I don't want you to protect me, I just want you."

"First off, _never_ compare me to Kate if you want to keep all of your limbs intact. Second, I can't stand to have my heart broken again, and if it saves you and Will some pain in the process, all the better."

"And you don't think this is going to cause pain!"

Will walked back in, apparently just in time. He had stayed in his room longer than he needed to, but when he heard raised voices he knew he had to intervene. There was a strange comfort in the fact that they were fighting. He wouldn't say it was good, but it proved that they were back to business as usual.

"I've got Jumanji, the game and the movie. You guys ready? I was thinking the game first."

The trio moved to the living room to play and Will felt the difference instantly. Dinner had been relaxed, although there was an elephant in the room they were ignoring. Now it was completely awkward and restrained. Slowly, that faded away as the competitive drive that motivated all three of them dispelled it. He couldn't help but notice the tiny glare his mom sent his dad every time the dice were passed and Dad purposely made their hands brush.

The beginning of the movie was passed with the three of them squished on the couch, with Will between his parents. But, about halfway through he got up to "get more popcorn", his real reason being an excuse to sit on the floor instead of with his parents so that they could be closer together.

Lucas slowly inched closer throughout the end half of Jumanji, but Sami either didn't mind or didn't notice. What he didn't notice was the growing frequency of his yawns. He didn't notice when his eyelids started getting heavier, or when he blinked them once and didn't open them again.

Sami yawned and stretched as the credits rolled. She was so ready for bed now, but she forgot that when she saw Lucas. He was lying back on the couch, with his legs in her lap, fast asleep. She'd thought he'd stretched his legs on her to annoy her, but that didn't seem to be the case.

"Is Dad asleep?"

"I think so," gently she lifted his legs and stood up, "I guess I should wake him up, shouldn't I?"

"Umm… no, that's not a good idea."

"Why?" Sami eyed her son suspiciously.

"He… hasn't been sleeping well lately. If he gets up now, he won't be able to go back to sleep."

"How do you know that, Will?"

"I usually hear him doing stuff at night. He'll watch infomercials or walk around the apartment. He doesn't know I know, so don't tell him."

It wasn't a lie, although Will doubted his dad wanted anyone to know about his insomnia. He had been blaming the breakup for his dad's lack of sleep. Hopefully it would change soon.

Sami didn't want to be, but she was already convinced before Will told his story. Truth was she just liked having Lucas in the house, "Alright. You get ready for bed, I'll take care of him."

Carefully, Sami eased off Lucas's shoes, and then took off his socks as well. He told her once that he could never sleep with socks on; ever since a childhood friend's older brother had told them that if they did the socks would stick to their feet forever. He had been embarrassed of the tale, but she'd thought it was cute.

She got out a blanket and tucked him in. Silently, Sami knelt beside him and brushed a piece of hair off his forehead. He looked so peaceful, so amazing, so beautiful. There was no other word for it, Lucas was beautiful. In time he'd understand why she had to save him from the pain that was sure to come if they got back together. Lovingly she leaned forward and kissed his forehead, then because they were too tempting to resist, she lightly kissed his lips.

"Sweet dreams, General."


	4. Stars

**Woohoo Ali's back! The real reunion's getting closer, I think we're nearing the light at the end of the tunnel. Sorry this has taken so long.**

Lucas shifted on the couch and flipped the channel again. Yet again, he couldn't sleep. Yet again, it was because of a certain blonde. He could just imagine her right now in his mind's eye. She was probably sleeping peacefully in her soft bed. Her bed always seemed more comfortable than his. Her silky hair would be fanned out behind her head. Her breathing would be deep and steady, her chest rising and falling with each breath. Damn, he was getting turned on.

Sami was avoiding him. The whole week. She had made up every excuse possible to keep from actually talking to him for more than five minutes. If only he hadn't fallen asleep on her couch last Saturday night. That had to be the source of her evasion. She felt like he had gotten too close. Lucas knew he had been making progress; she would have given in by this time. Damn it.

The irrational anger was starting to build. Sami couldn't hide from him forever. As his frustration built so did the force with which he pushed down the buttons on the remote. The news caught his eye out of nowhere.

It was like divine intervention or something. A shooting star was passing through the sky tonight in the astronomical hotbed that was Salem, USA. It almost seemed strange that the town had so many weird sky related things, but he was going to take advantage of it.

Lucas got up to put on some jeans over the boxers he had been lounging in and grabbed his keys. Reasoning to himself that Sami wouldn't want to miss it, he prepared himself to wake her up.

………………………………...

As silently as possible, Lucas eased her bedroom door shut. This was a very delicate undertaking. If he woke her too abruptly she'd be angry. Really angry. She looked just like he'd imagined, sleeping like an angel. He briefly considered just watching for a little while, then leaving but that seemed a little too stalkerish. Besides, he could watch her sleep in his arms all he wanted when they were back together. This was a step in that direction.

He knelt down by the side of the bed and gently shook her shoulder, whispering quiet words encouraging her to wake. He could see her try to fight it, but little by little her eyes opened to reveal the blue beneath.

Sami smiled lazily, still half asleep, "Lucas?" Suddenly her eyes shot up and she sat up completely, "Oh my God, is Will okay? Does he want to come home? I knew it was too soon for him to sleepover…"

"Sami, calm down. Will's fine."

Her fear was quickly replaced with exasperation. Without another word she laid back down and closed her eyes, as if to block him out, "I'm going back to sleep."

"I need to show you something. It's an emergency."

She buried her head further into her pillow, "Is the building on fire?"

"What? No, I don't think so."

"Are you dangerously close to dieing? Do you need a ride to the hospital?"

"No," he could see what she was doing now and it wasn't going to work.

"Then it's not an emergency."

"Please, Sami. Just come with me. You'll regret it if you don't."

"I regret a lot of things, Lucas, but sleeping has never been one of them. Leave me be, it's past midnight."

"Come on, you'll like it."

Seeing that Lucas had no plan to leave anytime soon, she reluctantly left her nice warm bed to follow Lucas out to the cool night air on the fire escape.

"Why're we out here? I know it's summer, but I'm cold."

"You poor thing. I'll warm you up."

Before she had time to make a disparaging remark, he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her body back into his heat. Automatically her body stiffened in his embrace. Then as soon as it had come, it changed. Something had changed, like a shift in space or time, and she relaxed against him.

"It's a beautiful night," she had to say something to lift the too comfortable silence, "It's so clear. The sky is absolutely amazing."

"It's perfect," he agreed, snuggling a bit closer.

Unconsciously, she moved her hands down to cover his, caressing his skin, "Nothing's perfect."

"We could have been. We still could be."

This was getting towards dangerous territory, "I don't know about that."

After considering for a moment Lucas decided to take a different approach, "You're right."

"I am?" Sami felt a little hurt that he was agreeing so easily. It made no sense. She wanted Lucas to give up, didn't she?

"You are. Perfect is boring. Perfect is the dull, uneventful life Carrie and Austin would have had if we hadn't interfered, humdrum children and all."

They laughed together, lost in a world from long ago. Mocking the people they once were. Sami leaned back her head a little to allow his forehead to rest on her temple. His warm breath was tickling her neck.

"I want a real life. I want our life to be challenging. I want to appreciate every second we have, I want to be grateful for it. Perfect is just a fantasy, I want reality."

The will to fight was slowly fading. If Sami didn't step away fast she wouldn't be able to keep it up. Somehow she had to distance herself, but it was too perfect a moment. Out of the corner of her eye she saw it. Exclaiming and pointing quickly, they both managed to catch it as the fiery ball flew across the sky.

It was amazing. She had seen plenty of shooting stars in her time, but this one seemed special. Maybe it was a sign. A sign of what she wasn't sure, but it had to mean something. Maybe it meant that she should grab the special moments. Especially with Lucas.

"Did you make a wish?" Lucas's mouth was close to her ear, his voice barely above a whisper.

"The last time I tried, it didn't come true."

It had been right after they thought Billie had died. She and Lucas had been planning the wedding and ended up making love on the couch. They'd seen the star and Sami had made a wish, with complete faith in the power of wishes, that they would make it.

It had been childish to think that it would work, but it was like the little white weeds that came up every spring. The cottony part was really dandelion seeds, but a part of her still believed if she blew away every one in a single breath that her wish would come true. She wasn't sure she believed in wishes anymore.

As if he could read her thoughts, Lucas murmured, "Maybe your wish still needs time to come true. As far as I know, there's no time limit."

Sighing, Sami leaned into him and they watched the last trace of the star disappear, "Thank you for showing me this."

"Thank you for coming with me."

Laughing a little, she patted his hand, "I didn't have much of a choice, did I?" They enjoyed the peace for a minute before the inevitable came, "I guess we should both be getting back to inside."

"Right," grudgingly he let her go, then took her hand to lead her through the window into the living room.

Uncertainly, Lucas looked around the room. He really didn't want to leave, it didn't seem right. Sami probably wouldn't be too agreeable to the thought of him staying, though. Something had changed out there, but it was too soon.

"I, uh, I guess I should get going. Good night," he placed a sweet kiss on her cheek and headed for the door.

She didn't want him to go. She really, really didn't. It was beginning to seem possible for them to end up together; he was so incredibly adorable out there. It was hard to resist. But it was too much too soon, wasn't it?

It would be selfish to ask him to stay just for sleep, but why couldn't she be a little selfish? It wasn't like Lucas would mind, right? Besides, he was having trouble sleeping. It might help him. Yeah, that was the reason.

Lucas was resigned to his fate as his hand slowly reached the doorknob. He had held out a little hope that maybe, just maybe Sami would call him back. Even if it were for comfort sleep, it would be enough for now. But it wasn't going to happen.

"Lucas?"

There was a wonderfully quiet vulnerability in her voice as he turned, trying not too look too expectant, "Yeah?"

"C-could you, uh, I mean would…" Sami closed her eyes in frustration. Why was this so hard? "Never mind."

She looked so mournfully sad; it was obvious she didn't mean that. A little more confidently, he strode to her side hopefully to help her voice her request, "What?"

His eyes were so very gentle and Sami was sure she had never seen them look so… brown. They were just this warm, chocolate-y brown and she felt herself melting into them, "Stay? I mean, at least until I fall asleep?"

She knew this wasn't part of her plan, but he smiled a brilliant smile like none she had ever seen before, and she didn't care. She wanted him to stay. She was actually taking a step forward with him. She needed him to fall asleep. It was reminiscent of the beginning of their romance. Silently, Lucas took her hand and together they went into the bedroom.


	5. Hope

Sleepily, Lucas attempted to stretch as he became conscious of the world, but the familiar weight on his arm stopped his progress before it started. _Sami_, his smile grew as he caught sight of what little of her he could see. Her head was tucked neatly into the crook of his neck and her hand rested gently on his chest.

It was almost exactly the same position they had been in the last time he had spent the night in her bed, but with more clothes. Hopefully, the ending would be better this time. A little part of him was nervous, Lucas wasn't sure he could take much more rejection.

He felt his heart stop for a second as a bleary blue revealed itself from behind her lashes. He could see the confusion show for a split second before it was replaced with guilt. That was strange, not anger or fear, just guilt. What could that possibly mean?

Oh, this was not good. Once again she had let her feelings overcome logic. Just for once Sami needed to have her head outrank her heart, but it never seemed to work out that way. Slowly-slowly, she sat up and looked at him for the first time. God, he was adorable and he looked so concerned.

"Oh, shit," it came out as a whisper.

She could see him fighting off a laugh at this unexpected outburst, "What's wrong?"

Instead of answering, Sami sighed and got out of bed. Without waiting for him she went to get her coffee, she couldn't think without her coffee. She knew he had followed without looking. Wordlessly, she fixed his cup, too.

They sat together at the table, right across from each other. It would have been a sweet, domestic scene, except for the weird tension Lucas was trying desperately to find a way out of. No matter how many times he peaked at her over his coffee cup, she never met his eyes.

With his empty cup on the table, he openly watched her. She had finished only seconds before him and was now spinning her cup by the handle. The small clinking of ceramic on the table surface was the only noise. She was cute when she was nervous.

Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He reached across the table to still Sami's hands with his own, "Do you want to tell me what's wrong? I'll help any way I can."

"What am I doing, Lucas?"

He smirked, reluctant to go deeper into this just yet, "Well, you were just tempting gravity to shatter your favorite cup into a million little bits."

For once, she was the one trying to keep to reality while he was fighting to avoid the issues, "I had a plan. I wasn't going to tempt fate. I was going to make sure that none of us were hurt again."

"Did you ever think that maybe your plan would hurt us all more in the long run?"

Sami shook her head, unwilling to go there, and slowly got up to rinse out her cup in the sink. He followed yet again, wondering slightly why this always seemed to be the case.

"The only things that are going to hurt you, Lucas, are the things I keep doing that give you false hope. Asking you to stay last night was wrong and selfish. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. I want to have hope. I still do, that hasn't changed."

"_False_ hope. Nothing is going to change."

"I don't believe that. See, the very fact that you can't stop yourself from doing things that would give me false hope, in fact give me very real and very justified hope. You see, you have no control when it comes to us, so sooner or later you're going to have to admit that you want us together as much as I do."

Oh, right now she so wanted to hate him. The very fact that he could spit out a sentence like that and she could follow every word as if it had been her own thought was down right infuriating. It was scary how well they understood each other because a part of her knew he was right.

Slowly, Sami blew out her breath in a huff, "Sometimes I…urgh… I just, just want to hit you."

Lucas half-laughed as she let go of most of her tension. He stepped back and spread his arms to open himself to attack, "If it'll make you feel better, go right ahead."

An open invitation to beat up Lucas was more than even she could pass up, not that she wanted to hurt him "Are you serious?"

"Sure. Let me have it, baby."

His smile was playful and teasing, so much so that she knew she couldn't actually hurt him. She stepped forward, but instead letting him get off easy she balled a fist to pretend that she really meant business. Lightly she threw the punch, barely even grazing his stomach.

He let out a full-fledged laugh this time at this strange display of affection, "Is that all you've got? Please, you hit like a girl."

"I _am_ a girl," the vindictive side of her took over then as he laughed. Sami pulled back to punch him for real this time.

Her fist was almost in contact with his stomach, when Lucas moved to block her progress by grabbing both wrists and pulling her body flush against his.

Sami struggled to escape his grasp. They both kept up the fight, though somehow knowing this was really a battle of the wills and right now his outweighed hers by a ton. Really, it was all a game anyhow.

"Let me go you big bully!"

"Are you going to hit me again?"

She pouted sulkily, "Maybe."

"Then I'm not letting go."

"Please."

That cute little pout was getting to him and she knew it. But Lucas could play games of his own.

"On one condition," seeing that she wasn't going to argue, he continued, "Have dinner with me, tonight. We'll get this settled once and for all. I promise if you still want me to, I'll stop pressuring you."

Nope, I'll just let you come to me on your own. He added to himself. He didn't really doubt that after tonight Sami'd be back in his arms forever, but it was better to have all his bases covered.

She considered this for a minute. A night alone with Lucas might help clear her confusion. After all, what could it hurt? "You've got yourself a deal."

"Great. Now you can get dressed and get out of this building. I've got to prepare and this going to be a surprise. Do anything you want, I'll call you when I think you should head back."

………………………………...

Sami sat, hopefully inconspicuous, in a back booth at the pub. With her grandfather's chowder and a good book she was perfectly content. Well, almost.

Even the romantic trials and tribulations of Jane and Mr. Rochester couldn't keep her mind from wandering. Her stomach was doing flip-flops. It had been so long since she had felt the tingly, nervous excitement in the bottom of her stomach.

Her conviction to resist Lucas's many charms was falling fast, but right now she really didn't care.

………………………………...

Lucas was in over his head. He had absolutely no idea what to do. He could go casual. A homemade meal and good company. That would show her how compatible and comfortable they were together. Wouldn't it?

Maybe he should do it up right. Get all dressed up and then take her someplace fancy. Preferably someplace no one in Salem knew. It would show her how well he could treat her. Right?

Then again going out might take away the opportunity for some private fun. Not that he had expectations, just hope.

There were so many ways to go and he only had a couple of hours left. What would fit them best? That was really the question. The problem was he wasn't sure he knew how to answer it.

Sami was such a complex person. He needed something spectacular. But not too spectacular, she might think he was trying to dazzle her, maybe even buy her. Lucas had to find the perfect balance, and he knew just who to ask for help. With renewed zeal for his project, he dialed the phone to the people he knew he could count on.


	6. Magic

**Here comes a whole lot of sap. Just a friendly warning.**

Sami smoothed her dress again and took a deep breath, preparing herself to knock. Lucas had called about two hours ago. All he had said was to dress up a little and then meet him at his door at seven.

It was 7:03 now and her heart was pounding so hard she was sure he could hear it through the walls. From his voice Sami could tell that he'd put a lot into this evening. She knew what he was expecting, and truth be told, she was kind of expecting the same thing.

This was going no where. It was just dinner with Lucas, nothing to be nervous about. Just because he had the power to bring down all her defenses again, didn't mean that this had to be a big deal. Finally, with another calming breath, she knocked.

Lucas almost ran to the door when he heard the knock, but he fought down that urge because that would be too desperate. He was going for charming love-of-her-life, not pathetic loser who didn't know when to stop.

He opened the door and quickly stepped into the hallway, before she could see into his apartment. She shot him a quizzical look, but he missed it. He was too busy taking in the sight before him.

She was dressed in a deep blue that brought out her eyes and accented her pale skin. Her hair was flowing down her shoulders and in that moment he wanted nothing more than to touch it. For a minute he had trouble finding his voice, "You look amazing."

Sami smiled at him nervously, "You don't look too bad yourself."

And it was true. He was wearing a dark suit that fit him just right. The white shirt under the jacket was a sharp contrast to his tan flesh and she suddenly had the insane desire to rip it open and watch the buttons fly.

To shake away that too tempting image she attempted to focus on the evening ahead, "So, what are we doing tonight?"

"Huh?" Her voice pulled Lucas out of an intoxicating fantasy involving Sami and the elevator, "Oh, right, dinner. Well, I had a hard time deciding exactly where I should take you and what we should do, but I finally got it. Come on."

He took her hand in his and led her across the five inches that were separating them from his apartment door. Hopefully she liked the compromise he had come up with.

"We're going to your apartment?"

"Just trust me. You'll see in a minute."

"You know, we didn't have to get all dressed up for this. I would have been fine with…" She didn't get to finish her sentence because the living room had been turned into a wonderland that took her breath away.

The room was bathed in the soft of glow of countless candles. The lights were off and white Christmas lights were hanging around the room, gleaming like little fairies off in the distance. There were tons of white roses in vases of all shapes and sizes. Soft, melodic music was playing in the background. It looked absolutely magical.

"Lucas, I…wow…I don't know what to say."

He glanced down sheepishly, almost as if he was embarrassed at her awe. Sami could see the slight blush in his cheeks, which was quite a feat considering his complexion. He lifted his head to look at her and the smile on his face could only be described as the definition of a perfect smile, "Does that mean you like it?"

"I love it. Everything is so beautiful. If we could bottle this for retail, we'd be millionaires."

"Hmm, I don't know. I don't think I'd want anyone else to have our moment. It's ours, only ours."

The warmth of a love and contentment filled her body. Lucas always had a way of saying just the right thing to make her feel all gooey inside. She couldn't believe anyone would do something this incredible for her. Then again it was Lucas, and he always managed to make her feel like the most important person in the room.

"I can't believe you did all this." Her voice was filled with wonder.

"I had some help. Maggie and Julie came over to give me some advice. They even helped cook."

"Remind me to thank them later."

It was a simple statement that not many men would have read very far into, but Lucas saw hope in that sentence. She was completely enamored of the room, which was good. She was grateful for this evening, which was good. She was even asking him to remind her to do something later, like she expected him to be around. Okay, maybe he was analyzing a little too much, but it was something.

Sami smiled as he took her hand again to bring her to her seat. He even pulled out her chair before she sat down. It was too good to be true and she couldn't think of a single reason why this could be bad. Her plan was no where near her mind just then.

The food smelled amazing and tasted even better. Somehow they slipped into a comfort zone of light stories and plenty of laughter. It seemed to be an unspoken agreement to leave the heavy stuff for after dinner.

It was over a simple, but delicious dessert that Lucas decided to take the plunge and start to veer the conversation towards the point of the evening. He watched her carefully in the muted light, enjoying her cake and the words slipped out, "I've really missed you."

The direct statement was like a gentle caress. There were no fancy words or little embellishments to make her feel more special. It was a sentiment spoken in a moment of honesty. Sami felt a tug at heart and was slowly being pulled into his eyes.

"I missed you, too."

"I can't tell you how many times I've dreamed of us being here, ever since February. It was torture being away from this."

She frowned at the sudden and painful mention of their time apart. On some level she had known it would be mentioned tonight, but with it brought all the insecurities to the surface, "It didn't have to be like that. Why couldn't you believe me?"

"Sami, I really don't want to start making accusations." His answer was tight and warning.

"I'm not trying to accuse you of anything. I'm just trying to understand. Can you help me do that?"

She smiled at him encouragingly and linked their hands together over the table. He recognized the placating gesture and searched his mind. He owed her this.

"I guess, at first I just couldn't get past the image, you know? I really wanted to believe you, but every time I started to… I could see the two of you in bed together and it killed me. I…uh… I felt dead inside. And when the image finally started to fade, I forced myself not to think about you. If I thought about you for too long, then I'd want to talk to you and I wasn't supposed to want that. I really am sorry."

He looked so mournfully sad, that Sami didn't have the heart to hold it against him. His pain had been as great as hers. Still, something was holding her back that she couldn't explain.

"Do you want to dance?" she had to take the gloom out of his eyes by some means and this seemed as good as any. It didn't hurt that she'd be wrapped in his arms, either.

Lucas stood and she stepped into his arms. He held her close and she put her head on his shoulder. They swayed leisurely in time with the music. His hand made a slow journey down her back and then up again. Every time his hand would brush her silky curls. With Sami so close to him, he felt like he could tell her everything and anything.

His voice was a gentle whisper as he began, first by pressing a kiss to her forehead, "Can't you see how much we need this. We need us. When I lost you…God, Sami, it felt like time had stopped. My world was put on hold and everyone else kept going. Do you have any idea how hard it was to try to catch up, even though I knew I couldn't?"

She felt tears trying to escape her eyes and she tried, in vain, to keep them from falling. He was baring his soul to her and it was just as hurt and confused as her own.

"I know exactly how you feel, because I felt it, too. You don't know how many times I had to stop myself from running to you. I tried so hard to respect your feelings and stay away, but I… was so lost. I kept telling myself that I'd find out the truth eventually, but I couldn't find any proof. It felt like I had nothing."

Lucas could feel her silent tears wetting his neck and gently pulled back. He smoothed the golden curls away from her face and then wiped away her tears, "Please, don't cry. We have another chance here, Sami. It's what I want. All you have to do is say that you want it, too."

She stroked his cheek, enjoying his smooth skin, before making a decision. As if in slow motion, she moved forward and initiated a kiss. It was the only sign he needed to pull her close enough to make her knees weak. She sighed faintly and gave in to her feelings.

When, finally, they separated their mouths, their bodies stayed in close contact. She had her body pressed tightly to him and his arms held her securely. They had kept the slow rocking motion of the song and Sami lightly kissed his collarbone, "Make love to me?"

Lucas drew away to look into her eyes, somewhere in the back of his head he was thanking God for this good fortune, but he had to make sure.

"You do realize, that if we make love tonight, then there's no more running. You would be agreeing to give our relationship another try, there's no backing out of this. You and I would be together for real."

Sami touched his cheek tenderly, "I love you, Lucas. I know what will happen after tonight. It's what I want."

Joyfully, he moved in for another kiss. She could feel her head spinning and a familiar rush of love wash over her. Without breaking their kiss, he lifted her into his arms and started the suddenly very long journey to his bedroom.

He was almost there when the front door opened and a very unwelcome voice rang out, "Don't you dare even think about taking another step. What the hell do you think you're doing!"

Lucas rested his head on Sami's forehead in a grudgingly disappointed gesture, "I should have locked that door."


	7. Ruined

**Just remember that we all love Sami, okay. We all know that she gets scared easily, especially when it comes to Kate. She thinks that she needs to protect herself. Just, don't be mad at her. There is a reason that angst is a sub-genre.**

Knowing there was no way Kate would leave, so that they could finish what they started, Lucas gently lowered Sami to her feet. He brushed a light hand over her hair, but by her non-reaction, he couldn't be sure if she felt the gesture. Unenthusiastically, he lifted his gaze to meet his mother's eyes, trying to reign in all emotion.

"What do you want?"

She looked taken aback by his cold, clipped tone, but he didn't care. He refused to feel any sympathy for the woman who almost ruined his life.

"I had to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life, Lucas. You can't take that little viper back."

"What Sami or I do is none of your business."

"The conversation you over heard wasn't what you thought. She must have manipulated it somehow! I didn't set her up."

Sami gaped at Kate in shock. How far she was willing to go to keep her lie alive was unbelievable. She looked at Lucas to reassure herself that he saw the lie as well, but was surprised to see the disgust in his stare, not realizing that it was aimed completely at Kate.

He took a second to register how uncharacteristically silent Sami was staying, then only let the revulsion he felt seep through. She was going too far. It had to be stopped, but Sami didn't need to be here to hear what Kate might say.

"Sami, I think it would be a good idea if you left."

The sting of betrayal nearly took her breath away. How could he possibly believe _Kate_, of all people? Deftly, she hid her wounded appearance and left the apartment.

Neither realized that she missed the reassurance he was trying to communicate with his eyes.

Lucas didn't even realize that Sami had yet to say a word, because as soon as the door closed he focused his rage on the one person he had never expected to betray him.

"How dare you come into my home! You are not welcome here, I've told you that before."

"I realize you're angry because you think that I set up…"

"Think? Kate, I _know_ what you did. The only thing I can't believe is that it took me this long to figure it out. I want you to leave. Don't come back."

"I'm your mother, Lucas. You can't cut me out of your life, I only do what I do because I know what's best for you."

"Like hell you do. You claim that you want me to be happy, well Sami makes me happy. She _is_ what's best for me, but you can't see that."

"I know you think that she's the woman for you, but you can do so much better. You're being blinded by lust now, but in time…"

"_Lust_?" He felt physically ill at the implication that his feelings for Sami could be so violated and debased, "Don't insult me or the woman I _love_ that way, ever again."

"You can't love her. I won't allow."

Her depth of denial was laughable, but the last thing Lucas felt like doing was laughing.

"I'm not a child. I make my own decisions that have nothing to do with you," he shook his head in attempt to clear the pain in his body. She was making him do something he had never wanted to, "I don't know what happened to you, but some how you've changed."

Kate's brown eyes grew desperate to fix this situation, "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm still the mother you've always known."

He laughed a humorless laugh, "No you're not. The mother I grew up with would have been happy that I was in love. She would have supported me no matter what. You know, there was a time when you wanted me to go after Sami, instead of Carrie. Do you remember that? If you can find the mother that originally brought me to this town, then let her know I wish she would come back. That's the only way you will have any connection to me or my son, Kate."

Kate tried not to be brought back to the time when she had believed Sami to be a perfect match for her son, but the memories came flooding anyway. After coming back from the months she had spent gutting fish, when her family believed she had died, she had been ecstatic when she believed that Sami and Lucas had gotten together.

But she wasn't that person anymore, and Sami wasn't the girl she'd believed her to be. Tears blinded her eyes as her middle, and at times dearest, son walked away from her. This could be the moment that she'd lost him for good.

………………………………...

Sami paced her living room. Lucas had asked her to leave. That thought kept replaying over and over in her mind. She wasn't sure what she had expected, but that hadn't been it.

Kate was probably poisoning his mind. She was going to convince him that getting back together was a bad idea. Somewhere, in the back of her head, the irony was shining through. Not even a day ago she had been set in the belief that a reunion would be too painful, but finally she'd been able to move past that only to be proven right.

She heard the door open and braced herself. With her arms crossed in an unconsciously protective movement, she turned around to face whatever fate would bring.

Lucas took in her body language as a sign of stress do to their irritating interruption. She had changed out of her dress into a pair of pajama pants and a tee shirt that he recognized as one of his own he had been sure was lost.

Her makeup had been removed and her hair was pulled into a loose ponytail. It suddenly struck him that Sami looked very innocent. She looked too cute and young to have such a hard expression on her face.

"What are you doing here?"

He shot her a curious look, but couldn't provoke a clearer statement from her, "Where else would I be?"

"I don't know. Maybe hanging out with Kate. I mean, I'd think you would have to synchronize your Evil Sami stories. Maybe you two could get the rest of the town together, and then there could be a contest to see who's got the best one."

"Don't do that," Lucas felt a whole new kind of pain engulf him at her accusation, "Don't let her win."

She seemed to deflate and wearily sank onto the couch, "What's the difference? She's going to get her way eventually, anyway. She always does."

Her voice was laced with bitterness, but the despair rang through to him.

"We were so close, Sami. We were going to make love tonight, don't loose that feeling. Not even an hour ago everything was going our way."

She couldn't meet his eyes. This would devastate him as much as her.

"I can't do this. Every time I think we can make it, that dream gets ripped away. It hurts too much."

Although she tried to fight it, a few tears slipped out. Rapidly, she tried to blink them away, but that only served as a catalyst for more.

"But, that dream's not gone. I'm willing to fight for it, but you have to fight with me. I can't save us on my own."

"I don't have enough energy to fight for the rest of my life."

"But…"

"Just go, Lucas"

Anxiously, he searched for a sign that this was not happening. Somewhere in his thought process he knew that this was a defense mechanism. She didn't really mean what she was saying, but all he could see was that Sami was rejecting him. Again.

Sami saw the hurt in his eyes, but was powerless to relieve it. It would be better to get it over with now, rather than when they were deeply depending on their future, like last time. Her already shattered heart broke again as he got up and left.

He didn't even say goodbye.


	8. Wallow

**As you can probably tell if you've read my other fics I can't get enough of the Hortons. I only have two chapters planned after this, so you can expect this fic to be over within the week. **

The ring of her alarm clock was more unwelcome than ever before today. Being awake brought on all kinds of awful memories that would make today one of the most miserable days of her life. Going to work would make that ten times worse.

All Sami wanted to do was wallow, but that wasn't going to be possible. So, reluctantly cooperative, she responded to the bell that seemed to control her life. Resolutely she forced her eyes to open, and then wished she hadn't. It was too early to be so bright.

The early morning sun was especially harsh on her weary eyes. It, apparently, took a lot out of them when someone cried for long periods of time. Bitterly, Sami reminded herself that she should have learned that lesson by now.

The trek to her bathroom took longer than it should have, but when there as no motivation for her troubles, what else could be expected? She purposely avoided looking in the mirror for as long as possible and turned on the shower as hot as she could stand.

Finally, when it became inescapable, she took in her appearance. Her eyes were red and puffy, a common consequence of the situation. Her hair was disheveled and, when she took it out of the ponytail, it looked like a wild mane. But the most prominent trait was her lack of hope, joy, expectation. Lack of everything, really.

It was her own fault, but that didn't make it any less painful. She had been so freaked out by Kate's sudden appearance and Lucas's dismissal of her, that Sami didn't know how else to respond. Maybe it was a mistake, but she wouldn't think of that now.

A hot, almost to the point of scalding, shower did little to relieve her mood, but it did rejuvenate her body. It cleared her mind enough so that she could focus on ignoring the part of her that was dying to run straight to Lucas.

It was after she was showered, dressed and prepared for her Monday that she couldn't overlook her issues anymore. Will always had a way of knowing when something was wrong, and this was no exception.

As soon as he saw her he knew. Something had told him when he woke up this morning that his parents had screwed up again. For starters, he had woken up around seven in the morning during summer vacation and couldn't fall back to sleep. Then there was the instinctual gut feeling that something wasn't right. Finally, the look on his mother's face confirmed all suspicions.

"Morning, Mom. Do you want some breakfast?" He gestured slightly to the bowls and cereal he had already pulled out.

Sami forced a smile for her son. The last thing she felt like doing was eating, but for her little man she'd try. The way he tried to take care of her was too sweet for words.

She sat down at her chair with him right across and began to pour Froot Loops into a bowl. They weren't exactly healthy, but some much needed sugar seemed like a good idea, "Not that I'm complaining, but aren't you supposed to be at Grandpa Shawn's?"

Will offered a sheepish smile tinged with sadness, "I had a feeling something was wrong," his eyes penetrated into her soul as only a child's could, "and I was right, wasn't I?"

"Sweetie, I know you want your dad and me to end up together, but… I just don't think it's going to happen."

She tried really hard to ignore the painful wrench in her heart at saying the words out loud. It didn't work.

He tried to force the possibility out of his head. They had to end up together. Everyone knew they belonged together; the only ones that needed to accept it were his parents.

"You guys fight all the time. I'm sure you'll work it out."

A sad smile passed her lips at the innocent perception of the situation.

"Sometimes, no matter how much you want something, there are certain obstacles that can't be passed."

"But you guys can do it. I know you can. You're like… Sam and Diane or Lucy and Desi. You and Dad have to be together, there's no other way for it to turn out."

"I'd think Cheers and I Love Lucy would be before your time. And besides, I don't think either of those couple ended up together."

"But they should have. Did you know that even after their divorce Lucy and Desi would talk on the phone every night until he died?"

"How do you know all this?"

"I watch TV Land, duh. They had this whole special. You and Dad love each other, if you could just have one rational conversation you could work everything out. I know it."

"Will, this is a complicated situation. I don't want you to get your hopes up." Sami looked down at her soggy cereal that she could only manage to take a few bites of, and then checked the clock; "I'm going to be late for work if I don't leave now. Do you want me to drop you anywhere?"

With a heavy sigh Will recognized his mother's way of saying that the subject was closed, "Yeah, can you drive me to Josh's. He just got a new game."

………………………………...

Lucas knew that Sami worked today, so he figured that it would be safe to go to the pub for breakfast. He did not want to run into her right now. His conflicting feelings would become even more troublesome if he were to see her.

A part of him wanted to force his way into her apartment and shake her until she saw what he did. That they belonged together, that they could make it if they tried, that the world simply was not right if they were apart. The rest of him, especially the part that contained his pride, would not entertain the notion for a moment. He was not going to beg.

He was tired of giving everything and getting nothing.

He sat in a back booth to escape notice and passively gave Lisa his order. It was not until he heard the voice across from him ordering the same that he realized that Maggie had slipped into the seat across from him.

"Maggie, I don't mean to be rude, but I really want to be alone right now."

"I thought that might be the case, which is exactly why I joined you."

Lucas smiled in spite of himself, "Why would you do that?"

"Because you look like you need a fresh perspective. I thought things were going so well for you and Sami. Lord knows, no woman could resist the scene Julie and I helped you set up. What happened?"

His mind revolted against the topic. He did not want to talk about this, but Maggie always got her way and this time would be no different.

"We almost made it this time. We were right there, and I mean literally seconds away from being together again," Maggie was almost shocked at how quickly his voice hardened in his next statement, "But then my mother had to show up. She always manages to ruin anything good in my life."

She closed her eyes mournfully. She could not imagine ever treating her children in such a way. Kate was the perfect example of the worst mother _ever_. Her poor nephew deserved so much better.

"Let me guess, she scared Sami off."

"Terrified her is more like it. She's convinced that Kate will always be in the way."

"I'm sure you can change her mind."

"I can't keep doing this, Maggie. I keep putting myself out there and she keeps shooting me down. There's only so much a man can take."

Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of breakfast. He gave the waitress a grateful nod of the head, and then looked at his food distastefully. A shadow came over his plate and he looked back up at Julie.

"Do you two mind if I join you?"

"You know what, Julie, you can take my food. Suddenly, I don't much feel like eating."

With that comment Lucas quietly said goodbye to his aunt and cousin, then left the pub with the walk of a man defeated by circumstance.

Julie sat down in confusion and Maggie turned back to her with a determined look.

"We have to do something about those two."


	9. Talk

Julie braced herself and prepared to go into the small clothing store Maggie had directed her to. It was a place she had never noticed before, but she figured that was the appeal to Sami. The chance to be somewhere that no one else could find her.

She had no clear plan and wasn't quite sure what she was going to say, but she had to do something. She and Maggie owed Sami and Lucas that much. After she had heard the results of the romantic evening she had helped Lucas prepare, Julie had felt ill.

Actually, she felt like giving Kate Roberts a piece of her mind. Then, slowly the guilt started to seep in. It was during contemplation of how Kate would know what was happening in her son's apartment, that she had made a startling discovery.

After helping her cousin prepare, Julie had treated Maggie to a congratulatory dinner. In a public restaurant, where anyone could overhear anything. She even vaguely recalled seeing a brunette rush out the door like a bat out of hell.

So, most likely, it was her fault that things went wrong. If only she could keep her big mouth shut!

They had spent hours thinking up ways to help the lovebirds. Finally, Maggie had suggested that she talk to Sami because they could relate better to each other, so here she was. The light jangle of the bell above the door disturbed the peaceful atmosphere for a moment, but no one looked up.

It took a moment, but finally Julie could distinguish the blonde head she was looking for from all the others. She made her way to her should-have-been cousin-in-law and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Do you have a minute for an old friend?"

"Hi, Julie," Sami smiled briefly in response, "I didn't know you shopped here."

"Well, I don't normally, but it seems very… hip?"

It was clear that she found the store to be too…something, but Sami couldn't tell what that might be. Maybe she just wasn't used to coming into stores geared towards the younger crowds.

"I guess you could call it that. A job's a job, so it doesn't really matter."

"Do you get a lunch brake at this place? I saw a little café down the street. Maybe we could talk there?"

She knew what this was. Now all the people she who felt her life was any of their business were going to try and 'fix' all of her problems. She didn't want to talk about her problems, but maybe she needed some advice. She wasn't doing very well on her own.

"Let me tell my boss and then we can go."

"Great, we have a lot of catching up to do."

Moments later the two women were seated at an outside café with lunch in front of them. Sami picked at her Caesar Salad distastefully under Julie's close scrutiny. She was starting to feel uncomfortable.

"Do you want to tell me what this is really about?"

"Why, whatever do you mean, darling?"

"Cut the innocent act, Julie. Like you've told me before, we're a lot alike. I know you had something specific in your mind when asked me for lunch. Do you think, maybe, we could get to the point?"

Julie laughed at her directness and dived right in, "You're making a huge mistake."

"Well, what else is new?"

"Let me finish. I heard about what happened between you and Lucas…"

"And you've come to tell me exactly what I did wrong. How do you even know about this?"

"Lucas talked to Maggie and she talked to me. Then we spent the better part of our morning trying to figure out how to get you guys back on track."

"Any luck?" The retort was sarcastic and almost angry, but Julie thought she sensed some real interest deep down.

"There were a couple plans tossed around. We even considered locking you in a closet until you came to an understanding, but we had to reject that one. I wouldn't want any dead bodies on my hands."

Julie waved her manicured hands in the air as if to better explain her reasoning and Sami had the outrageous urge to laugh hysterically, "Thanks for that, at least."

She continued as if there had never been an interruption, "Finally, I had the practical, but most likely ridiculous, idea of trying a logical conversation. Now tell me, do you think we could try it out? Just so that I can say that I gave it my all."

Sami sighed in agitation and took a sip of her lemonade, "Say your piece, but I'm not promising anything."

"That's all I ask. Now, I want you to think about what you're giving up. Really think about it."

"I have though about it. All I do is think about it. The fact of the matter is that Kate will always be a problem."

"Plenty of people have had in-laws from hell. You would hardly be the first. I think this goes deeper for you. The only obstacle you have is your fear."

"How can I not be scared? Do you know how many times I've had my heart broken? And if we were to add on the pain Will and Lucas would go through again, it'd be more than anyone could take."

"I know you, Sami. You are a younger version of me. That's how I know you're strong. Much stronger than you give yourself credit for."

"Even the strongest superhero has his weak spots. Superman had kryptonite and I have my heart."

"It's not your heart that holding you back. Your heart is telling you to go to him as fast as possible. Think about it for a minute. Would you be able to handle it, if one day Lucas were to move on?"

Her heart railed against the image that was put before her. It was unbearable.

"What do you mean?"

Julie smirked in satisfaction. It seemed she was finally getting somewhere.

"If you let things go on as they are, sooner or later he's going to believe that you don't love him. He's going to move on and find someone else. Could you deal with that?"

Her mind was screaming "no", but somehow her mouth found a way to say, "I guess that's a possibility. If he would be happier that way, then…"

"Bullshit," Sami looked up in shock at the profanity that spewed out of the older woman's mouth like it was nothing new, but Julie didn't seem phased, "We both know that the only way my cousin will be happy is with you."

"I'm not so sure about that."

"I am. Lucas loves you so much that I don't think he knows how to function without you. So, the real question is, can you picture your life ten years down the road without him in it?"

"He's Will's father…"

"That's not all he is to you. You need him, Sami. The same way I need my Doug. Yes, you've been hurt in the past, but that's no reason to cut yourself off from the love of your life. Look past everything else in your life. Do you love Lucas?"

"Yes, but…"

"No 'buts.' That's the only thing that matters," Julie looked at the woman in front of her a felt like there had been a connection made, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I think it's time that I got home. You have to get back to work, anyway. Just… think about what I said."

She watched her sometimes confidante walk away with a mixture of gratitude and determination. She could do this. She could move past the fear. The only thing left to do was talk to Lucas. Sometimes a sensible conversation was all that was needed to see the light.


	10. Leaping

**We've now reached the end of another fic. I would've kept you in suspense for another few days, but I'm leaving town for two months and there's no way I would leave you guys hanging until August. Thank you to everyone for the reviews. I'm glad people enjoyed this because it is probably one of my favorites out of everything I've written. And I guess I'll wish you happy reading.**

Sami paced the hallway nervously. She had to knock. She knew she had to knock. It was Lucas. He would understand her reaction last night. Then again, there was always the possibility that he would slam the door in her face.

No, he wasn't like that. He would see her side, he almost always had before. Even with such comforting beliefs, her heartbeat was erratic and her mind was too jumbled for coherent thought. Okay, she just had to knock, speak from her heart, and hope for the best.

Sami took a deep breath and raised her hand to knock. It was less than a centimeter from the wood when somehow the bravery she had talked herself into faltered. Maybe he wasn't home. That was possible. It was still only mid-afternoon, about 3:30 by her count.

No, she was not going to talk herself out of talking to him when she had spent so long talking herself into it. For a second she wondered if that thought even made sense. Finally, she blocked off the part of her brain that was thinking and gave three short raps on the door.

…………………………….

Lucas half-heartedly flicked through the channels on the television, then gave up and turned it off. Most days it was a relief to be unemployed. He had time to himself and he usually enjoyed it, but now he felt like he needed a job.

Money wasn't an issue, but it would be nice to have something to occupy his mind. The Horton Foundation barely felt like a job and there was very little busywork he could pull out to distract himself.

Right now, he had too much time to let his mind wander. And inevitably it would wander to Sami, it always did. There was a painful pressure on his chest whenever he thought of her. It brought out the question he was striving to avoid. Why wasn't their love enough for her?

No, he wouldn't think of that. Lucas looked around the room for a distraction, momentarily stopping to look at the door. He could have sworn he heard someone pacing out there. He kept quiet for a moment, but when no other sounds came he dismissed it as his need for a diversion.

Will wasn't even around for him to play with. Not that twelve year olds played anymore, now they 'hung out.' Sometimes he longed for the days when Will was just a toddler, not the whole Sami situation, just the absorbing company of a three year old who wanted to be just like Daddy.

He let himself sink into the fantasy in his mind, but instead of a little brown-haired boy, he saw an adorable little girl. She had her mother's blonde hair and complexion, but his dark brown eyes and smile.

Lucas shook himself out his daydream as soon as he realized that he was imagining Sami and his daughter. The daughter he would never have.

These kinds of thoughts were getting him nowhere. It wasn't like Sami was going to burst through the door and declare her undying love for him in the next minute. Like that would ever happen.

Three short raps on the apartment door interrupted his internal monologue. Silently, he thanked his lucky stars for the disruption. Those kinds of thoughts were dangerous.

He had honestly not been expecting her. Hoping? Yes. Expecting? Not realistically.

"Hey," her voice was soft and apprehensive, "Can I talk to you?"

In her anxious state of mind, Sami almost didn't notice how well his jeans fit him or how amazing he looked in black. Almost, but not quite. She still managed to check him out, even in the most unlikely of situations.

Suddenly, he realized that he was still standing in the way of her entrance. Feeling that it would be safer if he didn't speak right now, Lucas moved out of the doorway. She slid by without meeting his eyes.

Sami was here. She was in his apartment. That was the only fact Lucas's mind could grasp as a breath of perfume captured his senses. He was furious with her, and very hurt, yet he still couldn't seem to resist anything about her.

She sat on his couch as if it were hard as a rock. Her back was rigid and she couldn't get comfortable. She wasn't sure what to do with her hands. She played with her hair nervously for a second, and then switched to picking at a loose thread on her jeans. At last, she realized that she was stalling and resolutely kept her hands folded in her lap.

Lucas, notably, sat on the chair near the couch instead of next to her and held his silence. She was the one who initiated this meeting so it was only right that she started the conversation. She just didn't know where to start.

"I, uh, I guess you're wondering why I'm here," her voice was weak at first, but it built strength as she went, "After the way I reacted last night, I wouldn't be surprised if you never wanted to speak to me again. I've put you through a lot these past couple weeks."

At this point she looked up from her very interesting hands to meets his dark gaze that had never left her face. The welling of tears in her eyes made him a little blurry, but she could tell she had his full attention.

Her hair was falling over her face and his hands were itching to get up and push it behind her shoulders. Resolutely Lucas tempered down the impulse in favor of listening to her speech. It could end up being every thing he'd ever wished to hear Sami say.

"I don't know if I can justify my actions to you. Especially when I'm only now realizing the reasoning behind them because of Julie. All I can say is that I honestly thought what I was doing was for the best. I really believed that I was protecting the three of us."

Without realizing it, he had gotten up from his chair and moved to sit next to her on the couch. He handed her a tissue silently and took her hand as encouragement. That seemed to give her courage and she offered him a shaky smile.

"I think the real reason I couldn't get past what happened last winter was because I… I didn't trust you enough to choose me over Kate," the guarded wording around the word trust said it all. That was one issue they'd always had trouble with, "And then, last night you asked me to leave and I was so sure she was going to get to you. I'm sorry for that. I underestimated you and I'll never do that again."

There was that attention to detail again. Her words warmed Lucas to the core. Although he was not entirely sure what she was getting at he had a pretty good idea. At least, he hoped he did.

"What exactly are you saying, Sami?"

It was the first time he'd spoken in all the time they had been sitting together, but his sudden words did not startle her. On the contrary, she felt them as if they were a gently caress and it emboldened her to get to the point.

"I'm saying that I'm ready now. I'm ready to move past it all. I want to fight for us. That is, if you still want me."

A small portion of his mind wanted to make her sweat for a couple minutes, the way she had made him worry. It wanted to give her a little piece of the torture he had experienced, but the rational part of him knew that she had suffered, too.

As Lucas wrestled with the angel and the devil on his shoulders, she was becoming increasingly nervous. What if he laughed her out of the apartment building? She wouldn't be able to stand it. Or worse, he could feel sorry for her. The last thing she wanted was his pity. She had to get away.

Her movement dragged him out of his thoughts and he caught her wrist before she could step away from the couch. He stood to meet her eyes before she could chicken out any further, "Of course I still want you. I'll always want you. I love you."

Sami's happy gasp was followed by her declaration of, "I love you, too." Which was quickly followed as what could only be described as the most perfect kiss of her life. It wasn't until they were breathless that their lips parted.

Lucas kept their foreheads touching and his arms around her body as the words formulated in his mind and came out of his mouth, "Marry me?

It came out as a moan-slash-whisper and it took her a second to recognize what he had said. She pulled away to look in his eyes, searching for sincerity, "What?"

"I want you to marry me. Tonight. I know this is a big leap of faith, but…"

"Lets do it. Lets get married." She couldn't wait for him to finish his sentence.

"Really? You mean that?"

"I've never meant anything more in my life."

She moved back in joyfully to seal the deal with a kiss, and then her mind began to plan.

"We need to go get Will, then we should call a Justice of the Peace."

"There's something we have to do first. Where's your ring?"

"It's in my jewelry box."

"Good," suavely he brought her hand up to his mouth and pressed a gentle kiss on top, "First, I want to slip it back on your finger, then we can do anything you want."

Sami felt her eyes tearing up again and she felt the intense need to hug him. She followed her instincts and instantly found the reassurance that she sought. This was indeed real. No one in the world deserved to be this happy.

Lucas kissed her head, he would never tire of touching her, and pulled her closer, "We can do it this time. I know we can."

This time she believed him. They could do anything together.


End file.
